Expenditures of urban and rural households in 2011

March 01, 2013

In 2011, urban households spent $50,348, which was 18 percent more than the $42,540 spent by rural households. Urban households had higher expenditures on food, housing, apparel, and education, while rural households spent more on transportation, health care, and entertainment.

Urban households spent $17,226 on housing in 2011, more than they spent on clothing, transportation, health care, and entertainment combined.

In the transportation category, spending differs by less than $400 between urban and rural households and the types of transportation expenditures vary greatly. In 2011, urban and rural households spent an average of $2,586 and $2,817, respectively, on new and used cars and trucks. Rural households spent $3,115 on gasoline and motor oil, compared with the $2,613 spent by urban households. But urban households spent more on other categories, such as airline fares ($360 compared with $137).

Urban households spent about $200 less than rural households on food at home, but spent about $600 more on food away from home, including meals at restaurants, meals at carry outs, and food on out-of-town trips.

In 2011, rural households reported spending $2,652 on entertainment, only $86 more than urban households. However, a major difference in entertainment spending can be found in the fees and admissions category, with urban households reporting expenditures of $621 per year, on average, and rural households reporting expenditures of $299.

Urban households were two times more likely to rent than rural households, and urban households spent $2,404 more on rented dwellings per year in 2011. Though urban households were less likely to be homeowners than rural households, they spent $1,946 more on owned homes per year.

Urban households spent more on natural gas, $438 to $213, and water and other public services, $520 to $290, respectively, while rural households spent more than urban households on fuel oil and other fuels, $423 to $133, respectively.